DPR urges the surge in prices due to the war to be a momentum to reduce plastic waste

Member of Commission XII of the Indonesian House of Representatives from the PKB Faction, Dipo Nusantara, assessed that the surge in plastic prices, which reached more than 50 percent due to the conflict in the Middle East, should be used as a strategic momentum for Indonesia. He urged the government and the public to use this situation as a turning point to reduce dependence on disposable plastic to save the increasingly critical marine ecosystem.

"This surge in plastic prices should be a turning point to reduce our dependence. Plastic use in Indonesia is very worrying. Moreover, our marine waste still dominates, even though the waste in the sea is dangerous for the ecosystem and very difficult to clean," Dipo Nusantara told reporters, Thursday, April 9.

Dipo revealed the fact that marine waste in Indonesia is still dominated by plastic materials that are very difficult to decompose. According to him, this condition is not only a threat to the environment, but also a serious health risk due to contamination of microplastics that enter the human food chain.

He said, based on data from the National Waste Management Information System (SIPSN) of the Ministry of Environment and Forestry in 2023, Indonesia produces 56.6 million tons of waste per year, of which almost 10 million tons or 18 percent of it is plastic waste.

Dipo warned that if the consumption pattern is not immediately changed, the plastic pile will become an ecological time bomb that will burden the country's finances in the future through the high cost of environmental recovery.

"We have to be honest that plastic waste is a serious threat. Plastic pollutes the sea, kills biota, to clogging water channels that trigger floods. Efforts to reduce must be done systematically now, don't wait for the environment to get worse," said the legislator from the NTT District.

Dipo also encouraged the government to strengthen the policy of banning disposable plastics nationwide and expanding the recycling program. He also challenged the industrial sector to immediately switch to environmentally friendly packaging as a form of responsibility of producers for the waste they produce.

"This price increase must be used to encourage behavioral changes at the industry and community levels. This is the time for us to switch to a more sustainable consumption pattern to protect future generations," he concluded.